Tulsa coach Bill Blankenship named C-USA football coach of the year

Tulsa football coach Bill Blankenship will lead the Golden Hurricane into the Dec. 31 AutoZone Liberty Bowl with a some excess hardware.

After leading his team to a Conference USA Championship and a berth in the Liberty Bowl, Blankenship was been named C-USA Coach of the Year Wednesday. The award was the result of a vote by the league's head coaches.

Blankenship led the Golden Hurricane (10-3, 7-1 C-USA) to its fourth C-USA Championship Game and second title in 2012 after posting a 7-1 record during league play. He guided Tulsa to its ninth 10-win season in program history and fourth in the past six seasons.

During his two years as head coach, Blankenship has amassed 18 wins, which is tied for the second-best start by a TU football coach. Tulsa has posted a 14-2 record in regular season Conference USA play under his leadership.

The Golden Hurricane won seven consecutive games from Sept. 8 through Oct. 20 and averaged 35 points per game. The leading C-USA ground attack (240.2 ypg) out-rushed opponents by nearly 1,600 yards, ranked 11th nationally in rushing yardage and scored 37 touchdowns on the ground.